Drink it in

I don’t know about you, but this year I’ve had the WORST case of spring fever!

All I want to do is be outside — just soaking it all in. Gardening, going on walks, hitting the trails, the beach, the pool, the soccer field, the tennis court, lakes, breweries, ice cream parlors.

All of it!

Winter was so long this year. When the warm weather finally arrived, I already felt behind on planting veggies, unearthing the grill, filling the propane tanks and getting out the summer toys. I was even behind on setting up the hammock.

Oh, the hammock.

Is there a more iconic symbol of summer relaxation?

I got my frame, one of those simple metal ones, from a friend for free. Then I found a used fabric sling from a guy on NextDoor for $30, compete with a pillow!

My son and his friends use it as a swing during the day, of course. But at dusk, after the playdates are done, the hammock turns into our favorite spot for read-together bedtime stories.

On those mild nights — in that short spring window when the bugs aren’t yet fully awake — we haul out the pillows and a fuzzy blanket and snuggle and read until the light is just too dim.

We take breaks to watch the last of the late-day light fade as the clouds shift and the birds flit overhead.

It’s heaven. Summer in Minnesota, folks. We KNOW how to do it.

Don’t believe me? Check out this issue — our annual Beat the Heat-themed magazine — for two amazing features on things we do pretty well in our summer-lovin’ state: I’m talking about ice cream and beer, folks.

Yep, we’ve done the deep digging and serious journalizing (so you don’t have to) to find out where to have ice-cold summer fun as a family!

In the process, we (our magazine’s staff) realized: We don’t need to “Beat the Heat.”

We need to join it. Because when it’s gone, it’s gone for so long. (In fact, next year, we’re going to go ahead and change our July issue theme from Beat the Heat to Local Eats.)